River cruises draw more Swiss travellers

River cruises are booming among Swiss holidaymakers, with trips on the Rhine, Danube and other rivers becoming increasingly popular, SRF reported in a report by RTS.

The MS Rhône Princess travels up the Rhine at a leisurely 15 kilometres per hour, carrying 118 passengers, including 21 from Switzerland. The 110-metre-long ship weighs 1,700 tonnes, making it considerably smaller than ocean cruise ships. On board, passengers are offered passing landscapes, daily entertainment and upscale meals.

The format appeals to travellers who enjoy being on the water but want to avoid the thousands of passengers found on large ocean liners. “There are just over a hundred of us here, whereas at sea there are thousands of passengers. It is much more intimate and friendly,” Fabienne, a cruise passenger from Valais, told RTS.

Prices for the one-week trip start at 1,599 Swiss francs per person. In this example, the price includes full board and bus transport from French-speaking Switzerland, while shore excursions can cost extra. For Paul-André, a pensioner from Biel, the final bill for himself and his partner came to about 4,000 francs. “It is not cheap, but the value for money is right,” he said.

Croisi Europe, a family-owned company operating around 50 ships on rivers including the Mekong, Danube, Douro and Rhine, considers Switzerland an important market. “Switzerland accounts for about 15 percent of our international turnover,” said Michel Grimm, the company’s international sales director.

After the sector came to a standstill during the pandemic, it recovered quickly. “The momentum is very strong, with average turnover growth of 10 percent a year,” Grimm said.

Retired people, who generally have the time and budget for these all-inclusive holidays, are driving much of the growth.

The expansion is creating logistical and environmental challenges. Wesley, a ship’s captain, said rising demand was leading to more vessels on the rivers and sometimes causing delays at locks. He added that docking infrastructure would have to adapt.

Ship operators are also affected by volatile energy prices. According to the report, professional diesel fuel rose within a few months from 0.56 rappen to 1.07 francs per litre.

River ships are smaller in scale than ocean cruise ships, which are often criticised for their pollution. The MS Rhône Princess is powered by 500-horsepower engines, equivalent to those used in large lorries, and runs on gas oil with a lower sulphur content. “It is still a diesel engine,” Wesley said, “but the environmental impact is more limited than in ocean shipping.”